IUCN/SSC Otter Specialist Group Bulletin
©IUCN/SCC Otter Specialist Group
Volume 41 Issue 3 (October 2024)
Abstracts
A Survey of Otters in the Kholongchu and Upper Drangmechu Rivers, Eastern Bhutan
Pages 125 - 139 (Report)
Lam Norbu, Tandin Jamtsho, Karma Jamtsho, Pema Tenzin, and Ugyen Lhendup
Otter species are declining across their distribution range in asia. Only scanty information is available about the presence of otters in Bhutan. This study documents the presence of three otter species, the smooth-coated otter (Lutrogale perspicillata), the small-clawed otter (Aonyx cinereus) and eurasian otter (Lutra lutra), in the landscape of Trashigang forest division in Eastern Bhutan. Multiple techniques were used to document otter presence, including camera trap survey, sign survey, direct sighting, reliable photographic evidence, found specimens, and public consultation. Habitat disturbances including sand mining and quarry, unregulated fishing and hydropower construction were identified as significant threats to otters in the study region. Further systematic otter surveys are needed in the region and other parts of the country to make an accurate population assessment, understand threats, and develop effective conservation strategies for the protection of otter species in Bhutan.
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Photographic Evidence of Incidental Sightings of the Vulnerable Asian Small-Clawed Otter (Aonyx cinereus Illiger, 1815) in the Mixed Forest of Darjeeling and Kalimpong District as Part of Central Himalaya
Pages 140 - 153 (Report)
Shuvam Sharma, Albina Subba, Ganesh Pradhan, and Abhijit Chhetri
Direct incidental sightings and confirmed identification of A. cinereus was recorded for the first time with documented photographic evidence in the study areas. This new report of A. cinereus from subtropical humid type mixed forest (1294m a.s.l.) in District Darjeeling and from semi-temperate type forest (Elevation: 1924.35m a.s.l.) of District Kalimpong, in state West Bengal, India as a part of Bio-geographic Province 2C, Central Himalaya demonstrates that the distribution and ranging patterns of such vulnerable species is still patchy in India. The present study aims to fill up an immense knowledge gap on the distributional range of Asian small-clawed otter in human dominated vulnerable landscapes from the Central Himalaya.
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